Using smart push to retrieve search results based on a set period of time and a set keyword when the set keyword falls within top popular search ranking during the set time period

ABSTRACT

A portable terminal transmits to a server setting information for a smart push in which a keyword and a search term are set. The server determines whether the keyword falls within top popular search rankings during a term period corresponding to the search term based on the received smart push setting information. If the keyword falls within the top popular search rankings, the server transmits search results obtained using the keyword to the portable terminal.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(a) of a KoreanPatent Application filed in the Korean Intellectual Property Office onOct. 10, 2011 and assigned Serial No. 10-2011-0103233, the entiredisclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to searching for information byentering keywords, and more particularly, to a method and system capableof searching for information that can be available later in time viakeywords.

2. Description of the Related Art

With a help of widespread usage of portable terminals, such as smartphones, users may now search desired information anywhere at anytime byentering search keywords. For example, a user may perform a search fornecessary information by accessing a portal site(s) and enteringkeywords in a search window on his or her portable terminal.

However, for information that is not available at the present time butcan be known later, the user is unable to search the information. Forexample, if one wishes to find out a passage of an exam, an acceptanceof a job or a school at a later time, the user must inconvenientlyperform a subsequent search in a repeated manner.

Accordingly, there is a need for method and system that allows users toconveniently get the desired information that can be known only later orin the future without continuously performing a number of subsequentsearches.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An aspect of an exemplary embodiment of the present invention is toprovide a method and system capable of providing desired information toa user that is unknown or unavailable at the time of search but can beknown or obtained later from a variety of sources, without the user'shassle of having to later visit and search a portal site or a specificweb site.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there isprovided a search method which includes transmitting, by a portableterminal, setting information for a smart push in which a keyword and asearch term period are set, to a server; determining by the serverwhether the keyword falls within top popular search rankings during aterm corresponding to the search term by checking the received smartpush setting information; and if the keyword falls within the toppopular search rankings, transmitting search results obtained using thekeyword to the portable terminal.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there isprovided a search system which includes a portable terminal fortransmitting setting information for a smart push in which a keyword anda search term period are set, to a server; and the server fordetermining whether the keyword falls within top popular search rankingsduring a term corresponding to the search term by checking the receivedsmart push setting information, and if the keyword falls within the toppopular search rankings, transmitting search results obtained using thekeyword to the portable terminal.

In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, there isprovided a portable terminal in communication with a server whichincludes: an input unit to input at least one key word and a termperiod; and a controller for transmitting setting information includingthe at least one key word and the term period to the server, whereinupon receipt of the setting information, the server determines whetherthe at least one word keyword falls within top popular search rankingsduring a duration corresponding to the term period, and if the at leastone keyword falls within the top popular search rankings during the termperiod, performing a search and transmitting a search result containingthe at least one keyword to the terminal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other aspects, features and advantages of certainexemplary embodiments of the present invention will be more apparentfrom the following description taken in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a portable terminal according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a portable terminal and a server according to anembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a process of searching forinformation with a smart push according to an embodiment of the presentinvention; and

FIGS. 4A to 4D illustrate a process of searching for information with asmart push according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Throughout the drawings, the same drawing reference numerals will beunderstood to refer to the same elements, features and structures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Exemplary embodiments of the present invention will now be described indetail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the followingdescription, specific details such as detailed configuration andcomponents are merely provided to assist the overall understanding ofexemplary embodiments of the present invention. Therefore, it should beapparent to those skilled in the art that various changes andmodifications of the embodiments described herein can be made withoutdeparting from the scope and spirit of the invention. In addition,descriptions of well-known functions and constructions are omitted forclarity and conciseness.

A portable terminal, to which an embodiment of the present invention isapplicable, may be any mobile electronic device that its user may easilycarry with him or her, and may include video phones, cell phones, smartphones, International Mobile Telecommunication 2000 (IMT-2000)terminals, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) terminals,Universal Mobile Telecommunication Service (UMTS) terminals, PersonalDigital Assistants (PDAs), Portable Multimedia Players (PMPs), DigitalMultimedia Broadcasting (DMB) terminals, E-book readers, portablecomputers (e.g., notebook computers and tablet computers), and digitalcameras.

Referring to FIG. 1, a portable terminal 100 according to an embodimentof the present invention includes a controller 10, a wirelesstransceiver 23, an audio processor 25, a key input 27, a memory 30, anda display 50.

A wireless transceiver 23 includes a Radio Frequency (RF) unit and amodulator/demodulator (modem). The RF unit includes an RF transmitterfor up-converting a frequency of transmission signals and amplifying theup-converted signals, and an RF receiver for low-noise-amplifyingreceived signals and down-converting a frequency of the amplifiedsignals. The modem includes a transmitter for coding and modulatingtransmission signals, and a receiver for demodulating and decodingsignals received from the RF unit. In accordance with an embodiment ofthe present invention, the wireless transceiver 23 may enablecommunication with a server 200 to be described in conjunction with FIG.2, thus making it possible for a user to set a smart push and requesttransmission of the smart push setting information to the server 200.

An audio processor 25 may constitute a coder/decoder (codec), whichincludes a data codec and an audio codec. The data codec processes datasignals such as packet data, while the audio codec processes audiosignals such as voice and multimedia files. The audio processor 25converts digital audio signals received from the modem into analog audiosignals by means of the audio codec, and plays the analog audio signalsusing a speaker SPK. The audio processor 25 converts analog audiosignals picked up by a microphone MIC into digital audio signals bymeans of the audio codec, and transfers the digital audio signals to themodem. The codec may be provided independently, or may be included in acontroller 10. In accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention, if the user sets the smart push, the audio processor 25 mayoutput a predetermined sound effect for a process of setting the smartpush.

A key input unit 27 may include alphanumeric keys needed to inputalphanumeric information and function keys needed to set variousfunctions, or may include a touchpad or the like. When a display 50 hasa capacitive or resistive touch screen, the key input unit 27 mayinclude a minimum number of predetermined keys, and the display 50 mayreplace part of the key input function of the key input unit 27. Inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention, using the keyinput unit 27, the user may enter smart push setting information byentering keywords and secondary keywords and entering desired terms andsources for the smart push.

A memory 30 may include a program memory and a data memory. The programmemory stores programs for controlling the overall operation of theportable terminal. The memory 30 may further include external memoriessuch as Compact Flash (CF), Secure Digital (SD), Micro Secure Digital(Micro-SD), Mini Secure Digital (Mini-SD), Extreme Digital (xD), andMemory Stick. The memory 30 may also include a disk such as Hard DiskDrive (HDD) and Solid State Disk (SSD). In accordance with an embodimentof the present invention, the memory 30 may store (or temporarily store)setting information for the smart push set by the user.

The display 50 may include Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) or Organic LightEmitting Diodes (OLED), which is classified into Passive Matrix OLED(PMOLED) and Active Matrix OLED (AMOLED), and may output various displayinformation generated in the portable terminal. When including acapacitive or resistive touch screen, the display 50 may serve as aninput unit for controlling the portable terminal, along with the keyinput unit 27. In accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention, the display 50 may display a setting window where the smartpush may be set, allowing the user to set the smart push while visuallychecking it. The display 50 may display the smart push data (e.g.,search results) received from the server 200.

The controller 10 controls the overall operation of the portableterminal according to an embodiment of the present invention, and mayswitch and control an operation of the portable terminal depending on auser input received using the key input unit 27 and/or the display 50.In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, if a smartpush is set by the user, the controller 10 transmits smart push settinginformation to the server 200, receives the search results that havepassed the conformance test, from the server 200, and provides thereceived search results to the user. The detailed operation of thecontroller 10 will be described below.

Although the components that may be included in the portable terminal,such as a Global Positioning System (GPS) module, a short-rangecommunication module (e.g., Wi-Fi module), an acceleration sensor, aproximity sensor, a geomagnetic sensor, a Digital Media Broadcasting(DMB) receiver, and a camera module, are not shown in the block diagramof FIG. 1, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the artthat these undepicted components may be included in the portableterminal to provide their own unique functions.

For example, a specific gesture input of the user may be recognized withan individual or collaborative use of an acceleration sensor formeasuring a dynamic force of the portable terminal, such asacceleration, vibration and shock, and a gyroscope for detecting adynamic motion of the portable terminal. If a specific gesture input isrecognized, a smart push setting window may be displayed and the usermay set a smart push (e.g., may enter keywords and secondary keywords,and set terms and sources for the search) on the setting window. Inaddition, the portable terminal 100 may communicate with the server 200,using a short-range communication module instead of the wirelesstransceiver 23.

FIG. 2 illustrates a portable terminal and a server according to anembodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, the portable terminal 100 accesses the server 200and transmits setting information for a smart push set by a user to theserver 200, and in turn the server 200 performs a search based on theparameters set in the smart push setting information and then transmits(or pushes) the search results to the portable terminal 100.

Although the server 200 is assumed as a server (e.g., portal server) ofa portal site that provides information search services, the server 200is not limited thereto. The server 200 may provide the information(e.g., link information about particular web pages) that is searched forwith the keywords (i.e., search keywords) entered by the user using asearch engine.

Most portal sites typically provide popular search rankings aboutspecific search keywords based on past search frequency and pattern madeby a general public in the Internet. Thus, the sever 200 may create andmanage, as a list of popular search rankings, a list of keywords whichare most frequently selected for a specific period of time, by checkingand storing the number of user entries for keywords (e.g., searchkeywords), the entry times, etc. For example, the server 200 may createand manage a list of popular search rankings using the top 20 popularkeywords, searches based on which have rapidly increased for a specificperiod of time, compared to the usual.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a process of searching forinformation with a smart push according to an embodiment of the presentinvention, and FIGS. 4A to 4D illustrate a process of searching forinformation with a smart push according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. An embodiment of the present invention for searching forinformation with a smart push will be described below with reference toFIGS. 1 to 4D.

Referring to FIG. 3, in steps S301 and S302, after a smart push has beenset by the user, the controller 10 of the portable terminal 100transmits the smart push setting information to the server 200.

As shown in FIG. 4A, a user may search for information corresponding tosearch keywords by entering search keywords in a search window 410. Inaddition to these conventional search methods, the present inventionadditionally provides a smart push option 420. If the user activates thesmart push by pushing the icon 420, the controller 10 displays a settingwindow for the smart push as shown in FIG. 4B.

Referring to FIG. 4B, a keyword 430 represents search keywords, and asecondary keyword 440 represents keywords used to filter (or perform theconformance test according to an embodiment of the present invention)the search results obtained using the keyword 430. A term 450 representsthe term in which it is determined whether the keyword 430 falls withintop popular search rankings, and sources 461 to 463 are used to filterthe search results obtained using the keyword 430 depending on thesources of the search results.

For example, a user may set (or enter) keywords, secondary keywords,terms, sources, etc. on a smart push setting screen shown in FIG. 4C,using keys on the key input unit 27 or a touch screen-based virtualkeyboard on the display 50.

Referring to FIG. 4C, the user may enter a keyword 431 a of“Announcement of Successful Applicants for Samsung” in the keywordwindow 430, enter a secondary keyword 440 a of “John Smith”corresponding to his or her name (or other's name) in the secondarykeyword window 440, set a term 450 a of “Jul. 1, 2011 to Jul. 11, 2011”in the term window 450, and selectively choose “Web Site” 461 a and“Related Uniform Resource Locator (URL)” 462 a from among the sources.

Selecting the web site 461 a means a user desires, if available, toreceive information about the web site (e.g., a web site announcingsuccessful applicants for Samsung) that directly provides successfulapplicants information associated with the keyword 431 a among thesearch results obtained using the keyword 431 a.

Selecting the related URL 462 a means a user desires, if available, toreceive information (e.g., link information) about the URL of the newsassociated with the keyword 431 a or the URL(s) of the web page mostfrequently selected by others, among the search results obtained usingthe keyword 431 a.

Selecting Social Network Service (SNS) 463 a in the SNS window 463 meansa user desires, if available, to receive information (e.g., postedcontent) about the writings, which are posted on Facebook™, Twitter™,etc. in conjunction with the keyword 431 a, among the search resultsobtained using the keyword 431 a.

Assuming that it is uncertain on which date between Jul. 1, 2011 to Jul.11, 2011 that the successful applicants for Samsung will be announced,the smart push can be set on the date of Jun. 6, 2011 or any range ofdates that may be announced or become available.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, however, ifthe user completes the setting of the smart push without entering thesecondary keyword 440 a of “John Smith” in the secondary keyword window440 on the smart push setting screen shown in FIG. 4C, the user mayrequest the portable terminal 100 in advance to receive, from the server200, information about only the web site 461 a and the related URL 462 aamong the search results obtained using the keyword 431 a when theinquired information becomes available between Jul. 1, 2011 to Jul. 11,2011 (e.g., when the keyword “Announcement of Successful Applicants forSamsung” or its similar keywords fall within the top popular searchrankings). Alternatively, the user may request a number of sitesproviding the requested information to provide the search result whenthe information is available during the defined date range on the smartpush setting screen.

In contrast, if the user completes the setting of the smart push afterentering the secondary keyword 440 a of “John Smith” in the secondarykeyword window 440 on the smart push setting screen shown in FIG. 4C,the user may request the portable terminal 100 in advance to receive,from the server 200, only the search results including text informationof “John Smith” from the web site 461 a and the related URL 462 a, whichis obtained among the search results obtained using the keyword 431 awhen such requested information meeting the criteria set in the smartpush setting screen becomes available.

If the setting for the smart push is completed, the controller 10 storesthe smart push setting information in the memory 30 and then transmitsit to the server 200 using the wireless transceiver 23 or theshort-range communication module (not shown).

Referring back to FIG. 3, in steps S303 and S304, the server 200 checksthe received smart push setting information and determines whether thekeywords included in the setting information fall within the top popularsearch rankings

Upon receiving the smart push setting information from the portableterminal 100, the server 200 checks keywords, secondary keywords, terms,sources, etc. included in the received setting information. Thereafter,the server 200 determines whether the keywords (including their similarkeywords) included in the smart push setting information fall within thetop popular search rankings of any search sites (e.g., Google™, Yahoo™,etc.) or designated sites.

For example, if the keyword and the term entered by the user are“Announcement of Successful Applicants for Samsung” and “Jul. 1, 2011 toJul. 11, 2011” shown in their associated windows 431 a and 450 a,respectively, the server 200 determines whether the keyword of“Announcement of Successful Applicants for Samsung” and its similarkeywords (e.g., “Announcement of Successful Applicants for SamsungElectronics”, “Job Openings for Samsung”, “Successful Applicants forSamsung”, and “Announcement by Samsung”, etc) fall within the toppopular search rankings (e.g., top 20 popular search rankings) in theportal sites from Jul. 1, 2011 to Jul. 11, 2011.

In steps S305 to S307, if it is determined that the keywords included inthe smart push setting information fall within the top popular searchrankings, the server 200 makes a search using the keywords, performs theconformance test on the search results, and pushes (or transmits) thesearch results that have passed the conformance test, to the portableterminal 100, and the portable terminal 100 displays the received searchresults. Note that the server 200 performs the conformance test (e.g.,filtering) on the search results by checking the secondary keyword andthe term included in the smart push setting information.

If it is determined in step S304 that the keywords included in the smartpush setting information fall within the top popular search rankings,the server 200 makes a search using the keywords included in the smartpush setting information and analyzes the search results.

The search results may include information about a large number oflinks, such as link information of the web site that directly providesinformation about the keywords included in the smart push settinginformation, and/or link information of the web page that other peoplehave selected the most frequently after their search.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, the user maybe provided with a function of filtering the search results by enteringsecondary keywords and setting the desired sources from which to receivethe requested information. Therefore, the server 200 performs theconformance test (e.g., filtering) on the search results by checking thesecondary keyword and the term included in the smart push settinginformation.

In the embodiment, if the received smart push setting information isanalyzed such that no secondary keyword is entered and as regards to thesources, the web site 461 a and the related URL 462 a may be selected asa default, the server 200 acquires only the search results whose sourcescorrespond to the web site 461 a and the related URL 462 a, from amongthe numerous search results for the keyword 431 a of “Announcement ofSuccessful Applicants for Samsung”, and transmits the acquired searchresults to the portable terminal 100. Accordingly, the controller 10 ofthe portable terminal 100 may display the search results received fromthe server 200 as a web site 471 and a related URL (i.e., related webpage) 472 as shown in FIG. 4D.

In an alternate embodiment, if it is determined that the secondarykeyword 440 a of “John Smith” is entered and the web site 461 a and therelated URL 462 a are selected as desired sources, the server 200 maytransmit the search results to the portable terminal 100 only when atext of “John Smith” is detected from among the search results and fromwith the web site 461 a and the related URL 462 a containing the keyword431 a of “Announcement of Successful Applicants for Samsung” or otherwords containing the keyword 431 a. Accordingly, the user of theportable terminal 100 may receive the search information only regards tothe announcement of the successful applicants for Samsung having a listof successful applicants containing the name, “John Smith”.

It should be noted that the smart push setting information shown in FIG.4 is for illustrative purposes, thus other combination of settinginformation can be set according to the teachings of the presentinvention. Therefore, the setting information in the drawing should notimpose limitations on the scope of the invention.

As is apparent from the foregoing description, the present inventionallows a user to conveniently get his or her desired information withoutthe hassle of having to revisit and research a particular portal site ora specific web site in order to check the information that is notcurrently available, by setting the smart push setting information asdescribed above.

It should be further noted that the above-described methods according tothe present invention can be implemented in hardware, firmware or assoftware or computer code that can be stored in a recording medium suchas a CD ROM, an RAM, a floppy disk, a hard disk, or a magneto-opticaldisk or computer code downloaded over a network originally stored on aremote recording medium or a non-transitory machine readable medium andto be stored on a local recording medium, so that the methods describedherein can be rendered in such software that is stored on the recordingmedium using a general purpose computer, or a special processor or inprogrammable or dedicated hardware, such as an ASIC or FPGA. As would beunderstood in the art, the computer, the processor, microprocessorcontroller or the programmable hardware include memory components, e.g.,RAM, ROM, Flash, etc. that may store or receive software or computercode that when accessed and executed by the computer, processor orhardware implement the processing methods described herein. In addition,it would be recognized that when a general purpose computer accessescode for implementing the processing shown herein, the execution of thecode transforms the general purpose computer into a special purposecomputer for executing the processing shown herein.

While the invention has been shown and described with reference tocertain exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understood by thoseskilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be madetherein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention asdefined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A search method, comprising: transmitting, by aportable terminal, setting information for a smart push in which akeyword and a search term period are set, to a server; determining bythe server whether the keyword falls within top popular search rankingsduring the search term period; and if the keyword falls within the toppopular search rankings during the search term period, transmitting, bythe server, a search result obtained using the keyword to the portableterminal.
 2. The search method of claim 1, wherein the smart pushsetting information further includes source setting information forspecifying at least one source of the search result.
 3. The searchmethod of claim 2, wherein the transmitting search result by the servercomprises: if the keyword falls within the top popular search rankings,performing a search using the keyword; and transmitting the searchresult including the at least one source to the portable terminal. 4.The search method of claim 3, wherein the search result transmitted tothe portable terminal include link information of a web page mostfrequently selected by others.
 5. The search method of claim 1, whereinthe smart push setting information further includes a secondary keyword.6. The search method of claim 5, wherein the transmitting search resultcomprises: if the keyword falls within the top popular search rankings,filtering the search result using the secondary keyword; andtransmitting a search outcome including the secondary keyword to theportable terminal.
 7. The search method of claim 1, further comprisingdisplaying by the portable terminal the search result transmitted fromthe server.
 8. A search system, comprising: a portable terminal fortransmitting setting information for a smart push in which a keyword anda search term period are set, to a server; and the server fordetermining whether the keyword falls within top popular search rankingsduring the search term period, and if the keyword falls within the toppopular search rankings during the search term period, transmitting asearch result obtained using the keyword to the portable terminal. 9.The search system of claim 8, wherein the smart push setting informationfurther includes source setting information for specifying at least onesource of the search result.
 10. The search system of claim 9, whereinif the keyword falls within the top popular search rankings, the serverperforms a search using the keyword, and transmits the search resultincluding the at least one source to the portable terminal.
 11. Thesearch system of claim 10, wherein the search result transmitted to theportable terminal include link information of a web page most frequentlyselected by others.
 12. The search system of claim 8, wherein the smartpush setting information further includes a secondary keyword.
 13. Thesearch system of claim 12, wherein if the keyword falls within the toppopular search rankings, the server filtering the search result usingthe secondary keyword, and transmits a search outcome including thesecondary keyword to the portable terminal.
 14. The search system ofclaim 8, wherein the portable terminal displays the search resulttransmitted from the server.
 15. A portable terminal in communicationwith a server for searching, comprising: an input unit to input at leastone key word and a search term period; and a controller for transmittingsetting information including the at least one key word and the searchterm period to the server, wherein upon receipt of the settinginformation, the server determines whether the at least one keywordfalls within top popular search rankings during the search term period,and if so, displaying a search result containing the at least onekeyword.
 16. The terminal of claim 15, wherein the input unit furtherprovides at least one source to perform a search containing the at leastone keyword.
 17. The terminal of claim 16, wherein the server providesthe search result including link information corresponding to the atleast one source containing the at least one key word.
 18. The terminalof claim 16, further comprising a display displaying the search resultincluding the at least one source containing the at least one keywordwithin the search term period.
 19. The terminal of claim 15, furthercomprising a display serving as the input unit to receive the at leastone key word, the search term period, and at least one source forselection to perform the search containing the at least one key wordwithin the search term period.
 20. The terminal of claim 15, furthercomprising a display displaying the search result including linkinformation of a web page most frequently selected by others andcontaining the at least one keyword within the search term period.